By Dr. Darron Smith
White Americans took the loss of Mitt Romney exceedingly hard. Mormons, in particular, are mourning the defeat of the first Latter-day Saint GOP candidate to make it as far as Romney did in a national election. But what lessons have we, the American people, actually learned...

By Dr. Darron Smith
Black Americans have wanted, for many generations, a nation where equality of opportunity was the law of land, a place where dreams could come true regardless of skin color. Jim Jones, known by many of his followers as “father,” created the Jonestown commune—The...

By Dr. Darron Smith
Its generally dangerous territory to criticize powerful people especially the nations first black President, as Tavis Smiley and Cornel West learned in 2011 during their highly visible poverty tour. Cornell West, who supported the President in 2008, has been the most...

By Angelo Baca
It is time for minority voices to be heard especially when the possibility of a new Mormon president can happen. As a Native American scholar, I examined the effects of the Mormon Church upon indigenous peoples in the documentary film, “In Laman’s Terms: Looking at...

By Dr. Darron Smith
There are reportedly some 2 billion self-identified Christians in the world—followers of the life, ministry and teachings of Jesus Christ—with two of the largest denominations here in the United States being of the Catholic and Protestant traditions. Early...

I joined the Mormon Church when I was a youth growing up in Nashville. At the time, I didn’t know about the racist teachings by the Church that persisted until 1978. Nor did I realize that the Church had never apologized for those teachings. All I knew is that these were kind and giving...

By Dr. Brenda Juárez,
Lerone Bennett Jr. once asked, “Who is freedom’s friend?” For many in the US, this question is obtuse because the answer is blatantly, even embarrassingly (for you) obvious—we are! The “we” here refers to we, White people—a point underscored by the idea...

By Dr. Darron T. Smith
With the fast approaching 2012 elections on the horizon, there is one question left unanswered. As a widely circulated Associated Press article asked, “Will Obama’s Blackness Prevail Over Romney’s Mormonism in 2012?,” it went on to point out the unique...

A look at the Mormon faith’s history of belief on African-Americans and their role in the church, with Darron Smith. His research focus is Blacks and The Church of Latter Day Saints, and he is the co-editor of the essay collection “Black and Mormon.” He’s also an...

By Dr. Darron T. Smith
What does it mean to be Black in America? Many Americans caught a glimpse of it on national television during the first of three presidential debates. The President look disinterested, annoyed, preoccupied, not on his “A” game as some analyst remarked. Other pundits...